The full story...

Mother and son charged over police death

EMILY BOURKE: A Sydney court has denied bail to a mother and a son who have been charged with the murder of veteran police officer.

Detective Inspector Bryson Anderson died yesterday when he was allegedly attacked with a knife after police responded to a neighbourhood dispute in Sydney's west.

The police commissioner Andew Scipione says it's a dark day for the New South Wales police force. It's the second death of a police officer on duty this year.

Timothy McDonald reports.

TIMOTHY MCDONALD: This morning, the commissioner Andrew Scipione paid tribute to detective inspector Bryson Anderson and the contribution he made to the New South Wales Police.

ANDREW SCIPIONE: His commitment, his dedication, his ongoing experience will be sadly lost and missed. He was a mentor to many and probably a better friend to even more, so this is the sort of man that no-one can afford to lose from a modern police agency.

TIMOTHY MCDONALD: Bryson Anderson was one of many officers called to a street in Sydney's west to deal with a dispute between neighbours.

The police spent several hours trying to diffuse the situation, but Andrew Scipione says ultimately, their efforts were unsuccessful.

ANDREW SCIPIONE: I can indicate that there was some protracted negotiations. We were working towards a peaceful resolution and unfortunately that did not happen.

TIMOTHY MCDONALD: The police have denied earlier media reports that the alleged attack involved an axe. Because the matter is still being investigated, Andrew Scipione wouldn't go into detail about what the police believe happened.

But he did give some indication that it must have been a chaotic scene.

ANDREW SCIPIONE: As part of the facts there will be some, we'll certainly be alleging that one of the offenders also assaulted an officer with a weapon, albeit we know as well that there was a bow and arrow that was seized at the scene so...

TIMOTHY MCDONALD: Andrew Scipione says charges have now been laid.

ANDREW SCIPIONE: Two people had been taken into custody, have been interviewed and subsequently charged with the murder of inspector Bryan Anderson. A 19-year-old male and a 45-year-old female from the Oakville area were detained at the scene and today they have been charged.

TIMOTHY MCDONALD: Mitch and Fiona Barbieri weren't brought to the dock at the Penrith Local Court. Neither applied for bail, and it was formally refused.

Police tendered a charge sheet, which listed their reasons for keeping the pair in custody overnight. It says they've shown no remorse and deny the offence.

The police have applied to carry out forensic tests on Mitch Barbieri. The two will appear in court later this month.

Bryson Anderson's death is the second this year of a policeman on active duty in New South Wales.

Forty-year-old Tamworth highway patrol officer David Rixon was shot and killed in Tamworth in March.

The Police Minister Mike Gallacher says it's the 150th anniversary of the New South Wales Police, and it was supposed to be a year of celebration. Instead, it's been book-ended with tragedy.

MIKE GALLACHER: We started the year with the death of senior constable Dave Rixon. We now conclude 2012 with the death of another officer. It is indeed a very sad year.

TIMOTHY MCDONALD: Both the commissioner and the Minister will today attend the annual police widows luncheon.

Mike Gallacher says he expects it will be a particularly solemn event this year.

MIKE GALLACHER: Today it will be with a very sad and heavy heart that both of us speak to those widows knowing that sadly another widow and another family has been added to the list.

TIMOTHY MCDONALD: The New South Wales Premier Barry O'Farrell says his Government will donate $10,000 to a fund to support inspector Anderson's family.

He's asking everyone to spare a thought for the police today, as they head back out to a potentially dangerous job, while they mourn the loss of a colleague.

BARRY O'FARRELL: Whether domestic violence, whether neighbourhood disputes, whether other issues like that, it should never lead to the death of anyone let alone an officer who comes from a family that served the state, an officer who was simply out there trying to protect the local community.

From the Archives

Sri Lanka is now taking stock of the country's 26-year-long civil war, in which the UN estimates as many as 40,000 Tamil civilians may have been killed. This report by the ABC's Alexander McLeod in 1983 looks at the origins of the conflict as it was just beginning.